Come on Mal, you know the rules! Nothing, least of all the 'facts', should get in the way of a good Man Utd bashing!!! :D

True:D

Last week I was not too sure Chelsea were title contenders. I knew Chelsea has probably one of the best defence in the premiership and have the most consistent keeper in the premiership. If you look in midfield, Duff is an excellent player, Lampard is a good player, capable of scoring 12 goals a season and Veron now showing why Man U payed all that money for him. Mutu and Crespo likely to form the main attack. Chelsea just needs to add a combative midfielder to complete the team. I think Chelsea needs to add another wide player.

They've definately got a bunch of good players, but whether or not they can consistantly play well together is what makes a good team a great team.

yep as i said earlier if they can gel together get to learn each others positioning etc they can do well but for now they are just a normal team with stars or potential stars

ok chelsea have strung 2 wins back to back for probably the first time since chopper harris was captain.....see where they are come the end of the season.
man utd and arsenal are still the only contenders..
also how come uriah rennie wore green instead of black and white like the rest of his newcastle team?....we all know he was playing for newcastle on saturday and wearing green will not make me think he wasn't biased against man utd...
alex was right he is a joke

"bring on the prawn sandwiches"

Good, intelligent players will always play well together. I guess Veron would be picked out by many people to have inconsistent performances. However, I can see fellow Argentine Herman Crespo bringing out the best of Veron. Players like Crespo and Mutu are capable of turning games around at a flash. Duff is the sort of player who will battle through no matter what. Chelsea is solid at the back. I'm not too sure about Lampard but I understand he was consistent last season.

Chelsea have done well to beat Liverpool considering a lot of players have recently been bought. The game against Leicester showed Chelsea were able to battle where necessary. These are sure signs Chelsea will be title challengers. Another 7 or 8 games under Chelsea's belt and they'll be flying.

My only concern about Chelsea is their ability to dominate the middle of the park. Arsenal and Man U are definitely stronger in that area.

And one thing United have a shining record in, is not crapping out halfway through/at the end of the season. Consistancy is the key. I'll only be impressed with Chelsea if they are top 5 by march/april.

If Chelsea are a bit short by mid season they could always buy one or two players to add sparkle. I was also just as convinced when the kids at Man U were capable of winning the league.

But wouldn't the transfer deadlines put paid to that?

The transfer window opens again for a short time in mid season.

But bringing in a few players mid season when the current team's form dips is hardly the way to inspire moral and confidence - AF may threaten to do that when United lose to some two-bit sunday league team but that's part of his psychological warfare. Part of the spirit within United that keeps them going all season is the knowledge that Fergie is fiercely loyal to his players. You just can't buy that sort of moral and comeraderie.

It is a well know fact by bringing in new players will give the team a lift and existing players will have to fight for their places. I didn't see Real Madrid moral dropping when they bought David Beckham. Even Fergie will be looking for new players to strengthen his squad when he can.

The point is if a team looking for honours then fresh legs are a welcome bonus. The biggest dent to team's moral is carrying players who cannot perform.

Southampton 1 - 0 Manchester United. :D

United's 1st league defeat in 2003.

Ah well, we lost - just like Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea all will this year....